Baby Belly Update Week 14...

Okay...so no pictures for this one, but I promise my belly is growing. While I haven't put on any more weight, my belly is bulging...but I can still button my skinny jeans....just can't sit down. My cravings remain at watermelon, pastas and Mexican food....and I drink water like it's going out of style.

I have a few THANK YOU's to pass out. I would like to thank Amy Cranfill, Kelly Smith, Janene Day, my mother, Rodney's mother, Rod & Brenda (our neighbors), and Samantha Kadish for all the cute gifts and cards. We really appreciate all your thoughtfulness during this very exciting time.

The only new things we know about the pregnancy is that it is causing me heart burn and the baby is about 3 inches long now. As soon as we have a camera, we'll post some more exciting news!

Best to all....Love-Courtney

A little rewind...

Several weeks ago I sent out an email titled Baby Belly Update. This idea came from several people asking to see my belly as it grows...but apparently no one thought the pictures showed a belly. I PROMISE I WAS SKINNIER THAN THAT! My intent was to continue those updates weekly, but our digital camera was misplaced somewhere in Chicago. Anyway...thought I would post the original Baby Belly Update, then post a pictureless update and then continue them from here on out (as soon as we replace our camera).

So, here is the original Baby Belly Update (sent 7/21/06)...

Several of you have asked for pictures and updates because you are either my mother, grandmother or you have taken on the role of helping guide me through life. Some of you are getting this because I thought you might also enjoy the updates.

Baby Belly Update
Week 10

The belly is starting to grow and I'm working diligently to make sure the arms, legs and butt do not follow! Rodney, Gracie and I are taking daily walks through the neighborhood, and we are making fairly genuine attempts to eat really healthy. The all day nausea and complete exhaustion that have consumed me over the past five weeks have significantly declined in the past week. Rodney and I get about 10 hours a sleep at night and that helps to eliminate the afternoon naps. While the all day nausea has passed certain things such as fish and leftover chicken make me pretty queasy. My current cravings are watermelon, brownies and anything with cheese (which means lots of Mexican food!).

I have started setting up the nursery. My Grammy was here a few weeks ago and helped me select a beautiful antique dresser which we purchased and set up in the nursery (see picture attached). I have also obtained some antique twin beds that were my mother's when she was a little girl and that my sister used. I have set one of those up in the nursery for now. I was also able to get my hands on the little table and chairs that my grandmother, my mother and my sister and I had as little girls. Rodney's aunt Cathy also gave us a really cute antique rocking horse that I am working on fixing up.

In September we will find out the sex of the baby. We are dying to know so we can get to work on the rest of the nursery and decide on a name. Our boy name is decided, Clinton Robert, after my dad and Rodney's late grandfather. Our girl name is narrowed to three as of now-- Luella Rose, Josephine "Josie" Bailey, and Heidi Sage. We may wait until we see the baby to choose one.

We have a hunch it's a boy because we came to a clear cut conclusion on the name, we know what we want to do for a boy nursery, and if you ever ask Rodney's 2-year-old niece, Emma, she always says it's a boy without hesitation.

Below you will see a few pictures attached. One of the antique dresser and two of my growing belly. More updates to come!

And the shopping begins...

Well, we went to our 12 week appointment today to hear the heartbeat. The heartbeat was just beautiful. With a heartrate of 164, our baby is healthy and strong. My doctor, being a good friend of mine, also allowed me to go in for an unscheduled sonogram. And there we saw it....a little wee-wee. It's a boy! Rodney is beside himself with excitement and I am excited to start shopping. There are so many things I can do now that I know what we're having. Little Clinton put on a little show for us, rolling around in the belly and waving his precious little arms. Sonograms are amazing. We were able to see all the little fingers and toes. We could see the heart beating and, of course, there was no mistake it was a little boy! And he's only about 2-3 inches long! Hope you enjoy the pics...

And so it begins...

Thanks to Dana Henderson, I have been introduced to blogspot.com. Seeing as we have great life changes ahead of us and friends scattered across the country, I will be using this as a way to keep everyone informed of everything that is going on. There are a number of things to tell.

We recently celebrated our first wedding anniversary and so enjoyed remembering the wonderful wedding that we had. We were so appreciative of all the people who drove and flew great distances just to share that moment with us.

We are also coming up on the one year anniversary of buying our first home together. We love our house and are continually working on making it our home. For some time now we have felt like outsiders out here in the suburbs of Nashville. We seemed to be the only carefree couple not pushing a stroller....but that is changing!

In February we, too, will join the ranks of parenthood. With a due date of Valentine's Day we are preparing to welcome Baby Williams. I have already started the nursery and Rodney is helping me with all the heavy lifting. Because I love old things, we have pieced together some beautiful antiques for the nursery. We won't find out the sex of the baby until next month...so decor has yet to be selected. My favorite purchase so far was a gorgeous antique dresser I found at one of my favorite stores. I visited Mom and Dad last week in Iraan, and mother had already started shopping. I came home with a bulging suitcase last night full of baby stuff. We are going to the doctor today to hear the heartbeat for the first time. 1:30 is not going to come soon enough!!

Okay, okay...I've heard from several of you, and believe me I've struggled with this too, but we all have to come to terms with the fact that this baby will not be a Native Texan...gasp. However, I truly believe my husband loves me so much he will one day concede and we will move our little selves to the Lone Star State...it could be 20 years, but one day. For now my husband and baby will be Tennesseans and I will remain a Texan on hiatus.

Rodney has also decided to take on another challenge. He will be starting his MBA in January on a two year track. We look forward to all the blessings we hope that will bring...

And of course, our baby, Gracie Mae is cute as ever. We celebrated her first birthday in June with some doggie treats and puppy ice cream...she's really only slightly spoiled. We are sure she will encounter some adjustments with the new baby, but trust she'll handle them gracefully. She is full time entertainment for all the neighbor kids and we think she'll be fine with our baby.

I will continue to post things as they happen. I know I already sent out one Baby Belly Update via email to a few of you, but I will start posting those here.

Hope all is well wherever you are. Much love--The Williams